W&M statement on OCR review

Editor’s note: The following is William & Mary’s statement regarding the university being named as one of 55 schools under review by the Office of Civil Rights for its policies and protocols on sexual violence.

We have received notification about a complaint made to the Office of Civil Rights and we are working with them to provide all the information they requested. The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act prohibits the university from discussing the details of the specific case that led to this but, in general, we can affirm that sexual violence response and education is an area we are very focused on. We continually look at our own practices to determine if they can be improved or enhanced. Since this is a broad review of our policies and practices by OCR, the result may well provide us valuable information as we continue to look at new ways to address an issue that confronts every university in the country.